Enforcing the MLDA 21

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Even with the laws in place, many youth under the minimum age still have access to alcohol. Most adults will already have had alcohol before they turn 21. Some argue that this statistic is a reason for lowering the drinking age, while others call for for efficient enforcement.

Failing Enforcement

Since states began establishing MLDA 21 laws, the nation has seen a steady decline in underage drinking and underage DUI cases. While the total amount of underage drinking has decreased, millions of teens across the country still are able to access alcohol illegally. The failure of enforcement nationwide is most likely fairly obvious to most teens under the minimum age of 21. To many, however, the reality of the situation comes as a complete surprise. 11% of the alcohol in the US is consumed by youth who fall in the age range of 12-20, even though they fall well below the MLDA 21. Of this massive amounts of alcohol illegal consumed, more than 90% is consumed in a manner described as "binge drinking". In 2015 the Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that in the past 30 days over 30% of high school students drank alcohol, 18% participated in binge drinking, 8% drove while under the influence, and 20% rode in a vehicle while the driver was obviously intoxicated. With the health effects associated with underage alcohol, and specifically binge drinking, the prevalence of cases of teenagers breaking the MLDA 21 and the casual nature with which alcohol is consumed is an understandable cause for alarm.

Additional Statistics

1/6 teens binge drink
1/100 parents believe that their children has participated in binge drinking
In 2010 alone, there were over 180,000 emergency room visits for issues related to underage drinking
75% of High School seniors state they have consumed alcohol in their lifetime, preceded by 66% of sophomores, and 40% of eighth graders.
70% of people by the age of 19 or 20 have reportedly engaged in heavy drinking

Where is the Alcohol Coming From?

Friends and Family

Because of the MLDA 21 teens can not legally purchase alcohol for their own consumption anywhere in the country, yet alcohol still seems to be readily available to them at any time. The most common way for minors to obtain alcohol is from friends and family who are over the minimum age of 21. Of the 40% of underage drinkers who have their alcohol given to them, 35% received it from an unrelated person over the age of 21, and 53% received if from either their family or friends. When these students are asked how difficult it was to obtain alcohol they responded either "fairly easy" or "very easy": 11% of the time for 8th graders, 28% of the time for sophomores, and 42% of the time for seniors. The availablity of alcohol for minors who should be barred from underage drinking is the main hurdle nationwide MLDA 21 laws have yet to overcome

Licensed Distributors

When people under the age of 21 are unable to find someone to purchase alcohol for them, they simply try to illegally but it themselves. Most people assume that obtaining alcohol illegally from a licensed distributor is difficult if not impossible without faking an identity. A joint sting operation conducted by the New York Police Department and New York State Liquor Authority found that "decoys"-people posing as minors under 21-were able to purchase alcohol over half of the time. The authorities mentioned that an while they would be increasing their education on identifying those who are under 21 and spotting fake IDs, there was a legitimate issue with the lacking enforcement of MLDA 21 laws on the side of the distributors.

Fixing the Issue

Effective Enforcement

The issue of people under the age of 21 obtaining alcohol is two sided, there must be the group of under 21 individuals who chose to illegally drink and the group of over 21 individuals who choose to give alcohol to underage drinkers. Historically the MLDA laws have been enforced far more often against the drinkers than the suppliers. For every 1,000 minors arrest for possession, only 130 alcohol selling establishments and 88 adults are punished. Even worse, for every 100,000 minors arrested, there are only 5 establishments that are punished by fine or the revoking of their license. If states hope for their MLDA 21 laws to be taken seriously they need to start focusing on the establishments that supply the underage drinkers with their alcohol in the first place.

To the left is an NPR segment that discusses how and why parents are supplying alcohol to their children's parties even with the threat of massive fines.

Successful Enforcement

Many of the retailers who sell alcohol to underage youth understand that the punishment of their actions is not worth the monetary gain. They still sell, however, because they believe that there is little to no chance of ever actually being cited. Only 38% of merchants believe there is a likelihood that they would have charges brought against them for selling to a minor. Enforcing the law against these types of establishments has proven to be far more effective than enforcing it against the drinkers themselves. Sting operations, like the ones which occurred in NYC have been found to decrease the amount distributors sell to minors rapidly. Over the course of one year three successful sting operation were able to lower the amount of alcohol sales to minors from 59% to 26%. Simply showing distributors that the law will be enforced is enough to make them realize that the short term gain of the sale is not worth the long term risk of breaking the law.

References

NYPD. “Preventing Alcohol Sales to Minors.” NYC Health, Liquor Authority, www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/health/health-topics/alcohol-underage-prevent.page.

Wallace, Kelly. “Is Drinking with Your Kids a Good Idea?” CNN, Cable News Network, 11 Oct. 2016, www.cnn.com/2016/10/10/health/drinking-with-kids-national-drinking-age/index.html.

“Underage Drinking Statistics.” Responsibility.org, Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsbility, www.responsibility.org/get-the-facts/research/statistics/underage-drinking-statistics/.

“Alcohol and Public Health.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10 May 2018, www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/underage-drinking.htm.

“Underage Drinking Statistics | United States.” Edgarsnyder.com, Edgar Snyder & Associates, www.edgarsnyder.com/car-accident/who-was-injured/teen/underage-drinking-statistics.html.

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